Vietnam’s largest private corporation Vingroup wants to build a metro line to streamline connection between downtown HCMC and the outlying Can Gio District.
The company wants to use its own funds to study the possibility of developing the line, it said in a recent proposal it made to HCMC authorities.
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A road in Can Gio District, Ho Chi Minh City, September 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran |
In a meeting earlier this month, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh recommended Vingroup chairman Pham Nhat Vuong to develop the line.
“I discussed with Vuong about building an underground metro system from the center of HCMC to Can Gio District. Vuong agreed and was enthusiastic about the proposal.”
A 49-kilometer metro line linking District 7 with Can Gio has been added to the city’s development plans for 2031-2050, with the possibility of using a bus rapid transit as an interim solution before work on the metro system begins.
Vingroup also wants to develop Can Gio bridge, which the city wants to begin construction on April 30 and finish by 2028.
The bridge, set to replace a ferry which is currently in use, is “suitable for future development trends of the city,” the company said.
The two projects, when combined together, will ensure synchronization and reduce time and costs, it added.
Can Gio is about 50 kilometers from HCMC downtown with 70% of its area covered by mangrove forests and waterways.
An urban area of 2,870 hectares is being developed in the district at an estimated VND283 trillion (US$11.19 billion) for 228,000 people to live, thrice Can Gio’s current population.
An international port has also been approved to be built in the district.
